Assistant Professor of Theatre at Villanova University, theatre theorist, historian, and practitioner.
Dr. Bess Rowen is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at Villanova University. She is a theatre theorist, historian, and practitioner. Her first book, The Lines Between the Lines: How Stage Directions Affect Embodiment (University of Michigan Press, 2021) focuses on what she terms "affective stage directions," which are stage directions written in ways that engage the physical and emotional responses of future theatre makers. Her next book, which is under advance contract with the University of Iowa Press, focuses on the ways that mean teenage girlhood is overrepresented on stage. She is a member of the Actors' Equity Association and has studied acting at Michael Howard Studios, The Berkshire Theater Festival, and The Gaiety School of Acting in Ireland. Bess also serves as co-editor of the Journal of American Drama and Theatre. Recent articles can be found in the Journal of Dramatic Theory & Criticism, Theatre Survey, Modern Drama, and The Eugene O'Neill Review, among others.
